A variety of techniques are used to prepare various kinds of shaped fiber reinforced composite articles of thermoplastic and thermosetting polymers. For example, U.S. Pat. No. 3,244,784 discloses a process for preparing fiber reinforced resin articles of fully cured polyester resin. Such articles have a non-trivial shape but since they are fully cured, they cannot be further formed. U.S. Pat. No. 4,296,060 discloses a process of pultruing fiber reinforced rods in which the partially cured rod is immediately twisted online. U.S. Pat. No. 4,329,306 discloses a processable epoxy composition for use in filament winding or pultrusion. In pultrusion example 11 of this patent, the epoxy resin exits the die in a fully cured state so it cannot be further formed. U.S. Pat. No. 4,419,400 discloses pultruded reinforced phenolic products which are trivial shaped filaments. U.S. Pat. No. 4,483,904 discloses a method of forming a fiber reinforced body by destroying the strength and adhesion of the resin in a fiber reinforced rod to allow the fibers to burst apart, splaying the fibers and then treating the fibers with a setting liquid to form a newly shaped structure. U.S. Pat. No. 4,605,527 discloses a process for producing a clutch facing which comprises coating an inorganic fiber with a thermosetting resin, coating the resin with rubber-organic fiber sheets and molding the preform under heat and pressure to form an integral sheet.
Conventional pre-pregable fiber reinforced thermosetting resin articles having non-trivial shapes have been prepared by forming thin sheets of fiber reinforced thermosetting resin in which the resin was partially cured. When non-trivially shaped articles were desired, the thin sheets have been cut into a desired form, stacked to a desired thickness and then formed under thermosetting conditions to complete the cure of the resin and to form an integrated article of the desired non-trivial shape and form. Such a process (1) requires many pieces of different and complex equipment, (2) is not a continuous forming operation so it is difficult to have resins which will remain partially cured while they are being passed through the many manipulative steps required to obtain the article having a non-trivial shape and (3) is time-consuming.